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MAIMONIDES

“One only loves the Holy One blessed be He through the knowledge of Him. This love is commensurate to the knowledge. If the knowledge is little, the love will be little; and if the knowledge is great, the love will be great. Thus, it is imperative for a person to dedicate himself to understand and contemplate the wisdom and knowledge that inform him of his Creator.” (Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Teshuvah 10:6)

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Tetzaveh – Who Is The Owner?

Tetzaveh

Who Is the Owner?Have you ever noticed, while walking your dog or observing pet ownerswith their dogs, the pet running ahead and pulling its owner along?You wonder who is in charge… the person or the animal.

Similarly, we often wonder, does our money take charge of us or are we in charge of our money? Do we live to make money or make money in order to live? We need to use our money as a means to an end, to better our lives and the lives of those around us.

In this week’s parsha, the Jewish people contributed their wealth for the building of the mishkan, a temporary temple in the desert. They gave their gold and silver for the manufacturing of vessels to be used in the service of G-d. They controlled their money, using it for positive matters, and did not allow it to take control over them.

Reb Pinchas Reitzes, a wealthy chossid, prescribed to this philosophy. He lived in a very large and beautiful house. When asked how he, a chossid, could spend so much money on a materialistic object he responded, “Traditionally, community meetings are conducted in the fanciest house in the neighborhood. Since my house is the most elegant the meetings take place there. This gives me greater say in policy-making. In this way I am able to accomplish much good.”

We work hard for our money. Sometimes, we lose ourselves within it. So consider this: which would you rather be, the owner or the pet?

Rabbi Mendy Wolf is the educational director for the Institute of American & Talmudic Law, and the director for Project Life, an organization which promotes Jewish values throughout the business community in NYC. R’ Mendy is a sought after teacher and lecturer and resides in Brooklyn, NY with his wife and family. Contact Rabbi Mendy to book him to speak or with feedback at mwolf@iatlaw.org.